America’s most popular holiday, National Candy Corn Day, is coming up next week. However, dark clouds are gathering over this year’s celebration on October 30th due to the release of hacked emails by Wikileaks, the clandestine organization that publishes secret information, news leaks, and classified media from anonymous sources.

In the late 1800s, Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson’s third cousin, twice removed – at her request) invented candy corn, America’s favorite candy. A few years later Dickinson established October 30th as National Candy Corn Day, now one of if not the most popular holiday celebrated across the nation. Today, the North American Candy Corn Council (NACCC) oversees the many and various events, pageants, displays, spectacles and parades associated with National Candy Corn Day.

However, this year the NACCC Board of Directors is scrambling to explain emails from Kellie Rasberry, a major regional radio personality on the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show (and a world-renowned love expert) who is also the Chief Commentary and Communications Spokesmodel for the NACCC. In hacked emails to executives of various candy companies, Rasberry said she felt the need to take a public and private position on candy corn.

“I find I often have to align myself publicly with the popularity of candy corn,” said Rasberry, “but in truth, I hate the stuff – so I have to keep that private.”

Also, during a recent radio broadcast of the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show – as co-host Jenna Owens bubbled with excitement about buying Halloween decorations and candy corn – Rasberry leaned into her microphone and muttered, “it’s such a nasty candy.”

Pictured above: Kellie Rasberry, regional radio personality and the Chief Commentary and Communications Spokesmodel for the NACCC.

Of course, Rasberry’s “nasty candy” comment lit the internet on fire, and it became a viral call for solidarity among lovers of candy corn. People Magazine called the “nasty candy” moment a “battle cry.” Terry O'Brien, CEO of Brach's Confections, branded the insult the “best thing Kellie Rasberry has ever done for the sale of candy corn.” The Dickinson Candy Corn Company called it “the candy lover’s call-to-arms that Kellie Rasberry didn’t mean to inspire.”

So, while Ms. Rasberry might have a public and private position on candy corn, we hope that does not deter you from celebrating the pure joy of candy corn on National Candy Corn Day, and on October 30th, we hope you proclaim publicly that when it comes to voting for America’s favorite confection, you’ll vote for that “nasty candy,” candy corn!